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Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Wheres the love?

One of the last scenes of Seven Spielberg's Schindler’sList, shows Oskar Schindler filled with grief while surrounded by the some 1,200 Jews he has saved from the Holocaust. Looking around at what little he has left after spending almost everything he had to save Jews, he is not satisfied. He looks back on all the money he wasted early on in the war and wonders how many people he could have saved if he had not squandered his wealth. He looks at his car and wonders how many lives it would have been worth if he had given it up. He looks at a gold pin on his chest and cries because with it he could have bought at least one more life. He wonders how many lives he could have saved if he had given it all.How many of us will experience the same feeling when we understand that it’s too late? Will we get to the end of our life and realize how many lives we could have reached out and touched if only we had let go of everything we were holding so tightly? Will we finally realize that it was not things but people that really mattered? When will we finally attain a God-given love for people and give up everything so we can love as many lost souls as possible?

We are comfortable Christians today.

Isn’t that an oxymoron! Nowhere in the Bible is there a command to sit back and do your own thing. Instead, I see,

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind,”

and,

“Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Luke 10:27)

Jesus never once told us to do what was easy. Living your life for Jesus will never be easy. Living your life for Jesus means giving up everything to take up your cross and follow Him because He gave up everything to carry a cross for us. Living for Jesus means loving like Him.No Christian should ever make excuses like, “That’s not my problem to deal with,” “It’s in another country,” “I can’t speak their language,” etc. because James 4:17 says,

“Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins.”

Yes. We sin every time we walk past an opportunity to share God’s love. And believe me you; we miss those opportunities all the time.When it comes down to it, what is a person worth to you? Is it worth giving up a little time, love, and comfort? Are people worth giving your life for? Jesus thought so. What could be better than surrendering your whole life to following God’s commands and just loving people with all your might? Do we want to stay where we want to stay, or do we want to be where Jesus is: In the arms of the broken, unlovely, and lost.Do you ever look around and wonder why you have been so blessed? Have you ever thought that you were given those blessings to give them away? Luke 12:48 says,

“From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.”

If you have much, then why are we not giving much? Since we are not going to keep anything when we die, then why not use earthly possessions to bring people into the kingdom and show love?Have you ever looked through your closet and wondered how many people there are who have no clothes to wear today? Have you poured yourself a glass of water and wondered about the woman across the world that has to walk great lengths to get a little bit of dirty water for her and her family? Have you ever put some change in a vending machine and wondered how many children have died of starvation this hour? Have you ever walked down your street and wondered how many hurting people dwelled in those houses? Have you ever looked at the time and wonder how much you have left? Have you ever wondered what more could you do to make a difference?

When it’s too late will you wonder?

Or will you think outside of yourself today to touch a life tomorrow and the days after?Love. We are called to love. It seems so simple, yet it is so hard. Here’s a question: why do we call ourselves Christians when we are not showing love? Why do we walk past people in need when we are in a rush to get somewhere? In a rush to get where? What could be more important than helping someone else find their way in the dark world? If anything, we should be rushing to share the gospel for we only have one life to live and so many people need to find God’s love. We do not have any time to waste. When our time comes, we should look back on our lives not sorry because we did not show love in the time we had, but sorry that we didn’t have more time to show love.Matthew 6:19- 20 says,

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.”